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Don't Get Overwhelmed by the History of Profligate
When a royal record keeper reported the "profligation of the knights" almost five centuries ago, he didn't mean the knights were wildly indulging in excesses; he meant they were thoroughly defeated in battle. There's nothing etymologically extreme there; the Latin verb profligare, which is the root of both profligate and the much rarer profligation (meaning "ruin"), means "to strike down," "to destroy," or "to overwhelm." When the adjective profligate first appeared in print in English it meant "overthrown" or "overwhelmed," (a sense that is now obsolete) but over time the word's meaning shifted to "immoral" or "wildly extravagant."
Examples of profligate in a Sentence
Lance Morrow, Time, 4 Apr. 1988
Sure, the trade deficit symbolizes a profligate America, consuming more than it produces and spending more than it has.
—Philip Revzin, Wall Street Journal, 17 Mar. 17, 1988
Everyone seemed fond of statistics, but the counterterrorism experts were especially profligate with numbers.
—Kurt Andersen, Time, 24 June 1985
She was very profligate in her spending.
profligate movie producers hoping to create the next blockbuster
Noun
"Why did you ask that scoundrel, Rawdon Crawley, to dine?" said the Rector to his lady, as they were walking home through the park. "I don't want the fellow. He looks down upon us country people as so many blackamoors. … Besides, he's such an infernal character—he's a gambler—he's a drunkard—he's a profligate in every way."
—William Makepeace Thackeray, Vanity Fair, 1848
a profligate who could not really afford the grand style he maintained at Monticello, Jefferson died deeply in debt
a drunken profligate, he was given to wretched excess in every aspect of his life
Erik Morse, Vogue, 26 June 2025
Nothing better illustrates this than the profligate spending plan that Gov. Gavin Newsom got approved in June 2022.
—U T Editorial Board, San Diego Union-Tribune, 20 June 2025
Jacob Tanswell, The Athletic, 18 Aug. 2024
The monarchy and the British government, which provides significant financial support for the institution, have long faced a careful balancing act: Both have worked to maintain the pomp and circumstance of the institution while avoiding looking profligate.
—WSJ, 14 Sep. 2022
See All Example Sentences for profligate
Cite this Entry
“Profligate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/profligate. Accessed 14 Jul. 2025.
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